Teacher Gives Veteran Fencers An Edge

Boynton Man Was Longtime Fencing Coach

September 3, 2005|By Diane C. Lade Staff writer

This weekend, more than 250 fencers from 23 countries are gathered in Florida to cross swords -- thanks, in part, to Maxwell "Mac" Garret.

The Boynton Beach resident is the reason older fencers today have bouts of their own, called "veterans" competitions. It's a move that enthusiasts say has allowed serious older athletes to pursue a sport they love.

"Mac recognized the need to provide realistic competitive opportunities. These veterans are the role models for younger adult fencers," said Peter Harmer, a professor of sports medicine at Willamette University in Oregon. He'll be at the World Veterans Championships in Tampa through Sunday, both as the chief medical officer for the U.S. Fencing Association and as a competitor.

Garret will be there, too. He's 88 now and although his grip still is strong, he gave away all his equipment and hasn't picked up a foil in years. But he still is a regular on the committees that run the national and world meets. He is still, in his way, a fencing coach, just as he was for 42 years at two universities.

"He's the grand old man of fencing," said Terry Abrahams, of Tampa, who is competing in all three women's weapons categories.

Garret has coached Olympic teams, served on the U.S. Olympic Fencing Committee, wrote several fencing textbooks and spent a year directing Israel's first fencing academy. It was started by a judge who felt the sport fostered good behavior in young men and women. A tournament at Pennsylvania State University, where he retired as coach in 1982, is named in his honor.

What kept him in the game are his efforts to make fencing a lifelong, competitive sport.

"It has tremendous potential to keep people physically and mentally active," he said.

Prior to veterans' competitions, fencers had to enter all-age events if they wanted to stay involved after college or the Olympics. Garret saw even the best athletes get frustrated as they hit their 40s and found their experience no match for a 20-year-old's reflexes.

Garret convinced the fencing association to start a veteran program and, in his 14 years as its chairman, staged veterans' meets nationwide and abroad. Veteran fencing was recognized internationally in 2001. Fencers must be 40 or older to be veterans in national competitions, or 50 and older in international meets. Today, there are about 1,100 veterans among the U.S. association's 20,400 members. There is talk of adding a 70-plus category.

"We can have fun and still win now," said fencer Bob Cochrane, who lives west of Lake Worth and teaches fencing for the Palm Beach Fencing Club. "We may fence at a slower level. But we outsmart everyone."